18 August - The Jewel in the Crown - and Edith
I won’t bore you with the details but other people’s technical problems have
taken up all my spare time this week. All I will say about it is that BT which
pays me a good pension every month has become a totally crap company since I left.
Fortunately there has been nothing significant to report. Bexley Tory deceptions
go on of course; this morning they were claiming that “people opposed” building
the new Civic Offices.
Possibly
someone did, maybe a nearby resident who thought that Cabinet Members coming and
going would have a detrimental effect on property prices, but the Tory intention
is to get gullible voters to believe that Labour Councillors were against a move
which was predicted to save more than a million pounds a year by bringing all
Council staff under one roof.
Both parties (UKIP was not represented at the time) were united in wanting to have
a nice new building but… Hang on, I had better rephrase that.
The Tories favoured a second hand building for £35·8 million (anticipated life span 40
years) and Labour wanted a new one for £42 million (60 years).
Neither were very interested in the idea proposed by senior Council staff; rebuilding in
Broadway for around £27 million. Insufficiently prestigious presumably.
In the event refurbishing the Woolwich building cost as much as building anew
anyway as tends to happen. What the Council did is sure to be saving money - though
it’s perhaps a pity they blew the extra £15 million over the cost of the cheaper (Broadway) option - but what the
Tories cannot honestly do is to imply Labour Councillors were against the likely efficiency savings.
Maybe it’s just as well that Bexley Council didn’t go for the new build offices
in Erith, their top brass has difficulty spelling it. Does anyone know if Chief
Executive Gill Steward can pronounce it correctly?
I quite often have to drive to Bexley Village and shall have to again on Monday morning.
On about half of occasions there are serious traffic hold ups and surely that
must be Bexley Council’s fault. Even when it is some utility or other that has
caused it, surely Bexley Council has some say in traffic management?
If they have, they don’t ever seem to learn from past mistakes.
This is what a reader thinks of the latest calamity to bring the village to a standstill.
We are again being subjected to horrendous traffic jams in Bexley village due to three way traffic lights at the
junction of Bexley High Street and Bourne Road, and not just in rush hour, but all day.
Traffic has been brought to a standstill with jams back over the A2 Bridge,
halfway up the North Cray Road, Vicarage Hill etc. People I know have been made
late for their trains and for work.
What is Bexley Council’s excuse for not instigating one way traffic, which in
the past resulted in smooth traffic flow? Surely they cannot use the excuse they
used last time that they did not know in time!
The pollution from stationary traffic is dreadful, and we have to close windows as we can taste the fumes.
My wife has to wash down our front door nearly every day.
I am sure that the pollution is well above acceptable limits and I notice that
the pollution monitors which were on the lamp posts are no longer in use. I wonder why?
Is it not time that somebody in the council was brought to account for this ineptitude?
It is apparent to Bexley villagers that as long as the ‘Jewel in the Crown’ Bexleyheath is
looked after then all is well.
Come on Bexley councillors, we voted for you, now do something for us and ensure
that in future any works within the village are organised correctly, as it is
all very well being in a ‘preservation area’ when the well being of Bexley
Village residents is not being preserved.